Two days after the brutal murder of Labour MP Jo Cox, police are investigating the motive that pushed the suspect, Thomas Mair, to fatally shoot and stab the 41-year-old woman near the northern city of Leeds.

Unlike in the U.S., where the right to own a gun is enshrined in the Constitution, the firearms policy in Britain is based on the fact that "firearms are dangerous weapons and the State has a duty to protect the public from their misuse," according to government policy documents.

"Gun ownership is a privilege, not a right," the government says, boasting that firearms offences make up a small proportion (less than 0.2%) of recorded crime.

People who want to own a gun in the UK need to undergo a series of background checks that include interviews, visits to the person's property, criminal records checks, references from friends and even their doctor.

Applicants should be able to demonstrate that they require their firearm for either work, sport or leisure. They also need a facility to store the firearm safely.

Legislation is strict

Legislation was tightened after the Dunblane school massacre in 1996, when a gunman killed 16 children and one teacher in a Scottish primary school.

According to recent statistics, there were 582,494 shotgun and 153,603 other firearm certificates on issue last year, almost all from rural areas. A total of 1,863,524 guns are legally held in England and Wales out of a population of over 58 million.

If the witness reports are confirmed and given how strict gun laws are in Britain, it's very likely that Thomas Mair obtained his weapon in an illicit way.

"Britain is fairly protected from illegal gun trade by geography. It's an island country and not part of the Schengen agreement in the rest of Europe," Helen Poole, a researcher with the University of Coventry, told Mashable. Guns originating from Turkey, for example, can travel easily across the continent to France because of no border control in the continent.

But there's the darknet, antique guns and 3D printing

However, there are still ways criminals can get a hold of arms in the UK.

"Criminals can order different gun parts on the darknet and assemble the rest of the gun in the UK," Poole said. "Or they can simply steal them from people who own firearms legitimately."

Antique weapons fall outside British legislation and can be converted to commit a crime.

Another area concerns antique weapons which fall outside British legislation and can be converted or reactivated to commit a crime. The lack of a European directive among member states on the clear definition of "antique" means that criminals and gangs can exploit this legal loophole to purchase a gun, develop technologies to manufacture ammunition and then use it in crime.

"Every country in Europe defines antique weapons differently. What could be legitimate in one country, might be illegal in another — also for cultural differences (in some countries guns have an important role in ceremonies)," Poole said. "We need a harmonisation on the way we approach antique weapons. There are very effective weapons that are 100 years old and were used in World War I."

The last area involves 3D-printed guns which have become more effective weapons since criminals have worked out the best material to produce them. Not in the UK though, for a rather superficial reason.

"Nobody would produce it here, because it looks silly," Poole said. "It's considered not cool enough. Can you imagine gang members in Britain showing up with a little plastic gun?"

"Can you imagine gang members in Britain showing up with a little plastic gun?"

The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), an anti-hate campaign group in the U.S., has alleged that Thomas Mair bought a manual on how to build homemade guns and explosives from the National Alliance, a U.S.-based neo-Nazi group.

The SPLC posted receipts that reportedly show Mair spent more than $620 (£436) on books from the extremist group. One of the handbooks detailed instructions on how to construct a “Pipe Pistol For .38 Caliber Ammunition” using parts available in DYI shops.

Image: SPLC

The investigation into the suspect's motive continues. Mair will appear in court on Saturday to face charges for the murder of Cox.

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